


After the War

by theartisticfool, trickstarbrave



Series: Mockingbird AU [1]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's
Genre: Cannibalism, Drama, Gen, Guilt, Religious Themes, Secrets, Trans Male Character
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-01
Updated: 2016-08-31
Packaged: 2018-07-28 13:51:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,038
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7643092
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theartisticfool/pseuds/theartisticfool, https://archiveofourown.org/users/trickstarbrave/pseuds/trickstarbrave
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Signer war is over, and the Earthbound gods have been defeated. The WRGP hasn't even begun yet, but there are strange things happening with the Crimson Dragon. Yusei, now the new owner of the head mark, has to listen to its demands. However, it seems being a Signer comes with more conditions than he thought.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Hunger

**Author's Note:**

> We've been moving fics around for a while, but no more. This is the first installment of the series, and will now follow in chronological order. Other installments of the series will first fill up this fic, and then move on to the WRGP arc of the fic, and finally work more in the restaurant. We might move more of the restaurant fics around once we get there.

Yusei's breath caught in his throat yet again, nearly halting his driving altogether. As soon as he was able to, he pulled over into an alleyway, clutching his stomach with both arms.

The Crimson Dragon hungered. He knew that. But he wasn’t sure what for. He could only faintly hear its voice in his head as bits and pieces.

**“Hunt,”** it commanded. Yusei wasn’t sure _what_ it meant by hunting. There was neither a forest nor plains. What animal did it want? Should he fly to Peru to get to the bottom of this?

Yusei knew Saiga’s shop was down the road. There, Yanagi was given a job. It was hard enough for former criminals to work, and Saiga needed help to run it with all the demand he was getting. Yanagi would know what to do, or he’d at least have a better idea than Yusei.

He all but stumbled into the shop, knocking a box over on his way into the crowded building. Saiga instantly jumped from the crash, rushing over to Yusei’s side.

“Yusei--! What’s wrong?” His eyebrows furrowed, and he wondered if Yusei had been stabbed from the way he clutched his abdomen and from how pale his face was. He managed to pry Yusei’s arms away from his stomach long enough to check for a wound before Yusei curled himself into a ball further, groaning in agony.

“What’s all this noise about…?” Yanagi rushed in, dropping the box he was carrying and let all manner of souvenirs for tourists to buy scatter on the floor. “Y-Yusei! Yusei what happened to ya?”

“Let’s move him to the back for now. I’ll take him back there, and you close up the front of the shop.” Yanagi nodded, and Saiga had to drag Yusei to the back onto a couch to rest. It was better than the floor, at least, and they could have a better look at him there.

Not long after, Yanagi came in as well, a wet rag in hand. He used it to wipe the sweat from Yusei’s brow.

“He feels like he’s runnin’ a fever…” Saiga checked at well, placing his hand on Yusei’s face. It felt hot to the touch, much hotter than it probably should’ve been.

“If he’s this sick, we should move him to a hospital--”

**“No!”** Yusei’s voice boomed across the room, startling the other two.

“Y-Yusei, with a fever this high, you need to see a doctor!” Saiga argued while Yusei dug his teeth into the couch. His sharp teeth ripped through the upholstery easily, but it did nothing to satisfy the feeling coursing through him. It felt like he was burning, but the Crimson Dragon commanded him not to see a doctor under any circumstances. Even he knew this wasn’t something human doctors could fix.

“I…. can’t!” he groaned out, trying desperately to get his thoughts out through cries of pain and heavy breathing. “It’s… the Crimson Dragon… It’s what’s doing this!” He bit down again, tearing another hole while the mark on his arm began to glow. It only made the burning feeling coursing through him and the pain in his stomach worse.

Yanagi’s brow furrowed, and his mouth formed a deep frown.

He remembered what he saw in his travels. It was simply a mural, something archaeologists already documented. It was nothing noteworthy, perhaps long-gone ruins of something greater, though they couldn’t find anything further. It was of a dragon and five signers below him: a king, a killer, a healer, a worker, and finally a priest that stood right below the head. His teeth were sharp like a cat’s, and he held a heart in his hands with red paint around his mouth.

There were other murals depicting similar things, of the priest of the Crimson Dragon eating flesh of the living to control the Dragon’s hunger and even depictions of other people eating human bodies to appease him. Yanagi thought of it as nothing more than an odd custom, something of the time period in South America rather than something Signers were required to do.

“What can we do to help you then?” Saiga questioned, trying to hold Yusei down so he didn’t hurt himself struggling.

“I don’t know!” Yusei shouted, this time without the echo that seemed to ring through the last time. “I don’t know what it wants! I just…” Yusei screamed in pain this time, his eyes glowing red. “I need to _eat something now!_ ”

Yanagi shuddered, a chill running down his spine. He placed a hand on Saiga’s shoulder, attempting to move him away from Yusei.

“I think I have an idea what he needs.” Saiga let go, backing away slightly.

“What is it then? And how are you sure?”

“I told you I traveled to Peru, didn’t I? I saw the heart of the Crimson Dragon’s worship there, and I learned a fair bit… At first I thought it wasn’t true, but… I didn’t think Signers existed before all this either.” Yanagi moved to the back where they kept several coolers of their own.

Saiga was still involved with black market business, even if he kept his work under the guise of a souvenir shop. He made deals with criminals and those looking to buy illegal goods. While the City may have looked more friendly with the Neo Daedalus bridge now in place, it only made crime easier in many ways. Satellite was still hard to patrol, and now criminals could travel back and forth between it without risk of being caught. From the ports, criminals came by boat, now carrying plenty of goods and money for business.

In the back, Saiga kept plenty of these goods. Frozen food, refrigerated stuff, and even organs being sold on the black market. Many were just for illegal transplants from those in poverty looking for money to save themselves and for those who couldn’t afford a transplant from a legal doctor. He even hid a body once back there until the man hiring him to hide it came to dispose of it himself.

Yanagi pulled out a cooler containing kidneys labeled with blood type and age of the person they came from. Saiga raised an eyebrow.

“Where are you taking those?”

“You’ll see. If I’m wrong, I’ll put them back.” Yanagi removed the wrapping of one, taking it and its pair into the room where Yusei still writhed in pain. They couldn’t be stored, so as soon as the cool meat met the air, the scent instantly hit Yusei’s nose.

Yusei was on his feet in an instant, eyes glowing red and teeth clenched tightly into a snarl. Yanagi felt his knees go weak and dropped the kidneys onto the floor. Saiga yelled, but he was cut off as Yusei dove to the ground to devour them instantly. On the unwrapped one, he even swallowed parts of the plastic with it.

They were sterile and thus mostly bloodless, but they were human. And they soothed the ache somewhat. The Crimson Dragon allowed the pain to lower to just a dull ache, and Yusei’s temperature dropped to a healthy level once more. He sighed from the relief of it, even if it was still present somewhat.

When he looked up, though, he saw Yanagi and Saiga staring in horror. Yanagi had a nauseous look on his face as well, rushing to the back to vomit in a trash can. Even if he was the one who expected it, he wasn’t prepared to see Yusei devouring human organs on the floor like an animal.

Saiga rushed on the back as well. “Yanagi, what is going on?!”

Once he had finished, his head swimming, he took a seat in the chair. Yusei had followed himself, feeling anxious about what had just occurred. He was aware of what had happened, but it still felt like he had no control of his body either.

“... In Peru, it is said the Crimson Dragon and the Earthbound Gods must consume the living. It is to fuel their battle and their control over the Earth once they did win.” He took another wet rag from the sink nearby, wiping his face with it. “I had assumed it was metaphorical at first - and that it was spiritual instead of literal once I discovered that Signers were real.” Yusei remembered in his duel with Kiryu, watching people’s souls be offered up to the heart that would become Ccapac Apu. But he also remembered back in Satellite while they were desperate for food, and he and Kiryu had to resort to eating the bodies of those who were discovered dead.

Back then, it was always odd for his arm to have a dull ache, but he thought nothing of it. No mark appeared, and Yusei was used to aches and pains back during Team Satisfaction.

“... So you’re saying you knew? That I would have to be like this?” Yusei’s voice was cold, and his eyes narrowed.

“N-no, I didn’t know! I didn’t think it would actually be like this!” Yanagi put his hands up in defense, shaking his head.

“I asked you to tell me everything you knew about the Crimson Dragon, so why did you never say anything about this? Despite the fact you knew?!” Yusei’s voice grew louder, and his fists shook in rage.

“Yusei!” Saiga gripped his shoulders. “Do you really think Yanagi did this on purpose? Do you think he really expected this to be part of being a Signer and withheld it from you to spite you?” Yusei looked away, trembling in rage. But not aimed at Yanagi. It was at himself and the God that made him do this.

“I just…!” Yusei fell to his knees, guilt washing over him. He had been finished with this, and he had been prepared to put it behind him. He had been ready to let this dark chapter of his life die along with Team Satisfaction, but here it was again. In order to save the world, he had to kill and devour the people in it. “I didn’t want this… I didn’t want any of this--!” He hit his fist along the tile, and Saiga kneeled down to the floor as well.

“I know…” Saiga patted his back in an attempt to comfort him. “... Life has a strange way of giving the best people the worst of the lot. Turning heroes into monsters. But this isn’t your fault. You did your best with the lot you were given, and you protected all of us and the people of Satellite as well.”

Yusei’s tears hit the tile, and he couldn’t bring himself to wipe them from his eyes. All he could do was sit there and sob while the Dragon rumbled through the back of his head like thunder in an oncoming storm.

“We will help you through this, alright?” Yusei looked up at Saiga at the offer.

“What…?”

“We’ll help you, Yanagi and I. We know your secret already, so there is no need for you to worry the others about it.” Saiga smirked softly while Yanagi gave a sheepish grin.

“I can’t ask you to do that, Saiga--” Saiga cut Yusei off before he could finish it.

“You’ll have to eat sometime because of that Dragon, right? Better procure it without killing people then, and without getting blood on your hands.” Saiga stood, pulling Yusei up with him. “Most of these organs go to waste anyways, dying before anyone can get them to a patient. And if I dispose of bodies and give you some of the meat of people who are already dead, who will know?”

Yusei looked more distressed at that, but he nodded his head, tears filling his eyes.

“Saiga… Thank you.” He gripped Saiga’s shoulders tightly. “Thank you for everything. And now for this.”

“Don’t mention it, we’re here to help!” Yanagi patted him on the back, giving him a smile to the best he could manage while feeling ill. “We told you we’d always help you in any way we can.” Yusei trembled, trying hard not to sob again.

“Thank you both… But I should get going, however. Jack and Crow will be wondering where I am, and I don’t want to get them involved if I can help it.” Saiga and Yusei went out the back door and down the road to where Yusei’s D-wheel was located. Yanagi stayed behind.

“... You might have to tell them eventually. They are Signers too, aren’t they?” Saiga remarked, watching Yusei put his helmet back on.

Yusei looked at the ground, frowning. “If that is the case, then I’d rather wait until I need to than trouble them while we’re training for the WRGP.” Yusei rubbed his arm where the mark was located. “They don’t seem to be acting the same way I am, so for now I think I’m the only one the Crimson Dragon is asking to eat.”

“Whatever you think is best, then… After all, you know them the best.” And Saiga left it with that, allowing Yusei to start his D-wheel. “Anyways, come by in the next few days; I don’t want you getting sick like that again if we can prevent it.”

“I understand, Saiga.” Yusei offered him a half-hearted smile, which Saiga returned before Yusei drove off.

  
Saiga would have some interesting business investments to make now, wouldn’t he?


	2. Photographs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jack is transgender in this fic series, so if you're curious to see more of younger trans Jack, my trans fic "Discoveries" has it.
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> \--trickstarbrave

It had taken a lot of negotiation with Zora to have them stay in the apartment adjacent to Poppo Time. Well, it had taken Martha a lot of negotiating. Once Yusei stepped in to introduce himself and ask if they could stay for the tournament, as it would be easier to get to training and their duels than from Satellite, the negotiations went a lot more smoothly.

Yusei settled in first, followed by Jack. Zora was a bit fussy at the thought of Jack living there (his voice boomed through the whole apartment, regardless of the hour), but she ultimately left them alone. There, the two began to set up Yusei’s equipment, computers, and their test D-wheel. Jack was happy to be out of Carly’s apartment, where he stayed as she recovered from the Dark Signer war. It was awkward, despite how much he cared for Carly; her memories were missing, and she couldn’t stop asking questions about the war.

Crow, however, was staying with Martha. Since they began construction, the B.A.D area had been cleared out. Many criminals who lived there went into hiding, and Crow had to quickly take all his belongs as well as the kids to a new location. Martha welcomed them with open arms, but while Yusei moved into Zora’s place from his hideout from the abandoned subway with ease, Crow wasn’t feeling as welcomed. 

Yusei was famous, and he was charismatic in his own way. Not to mention he had  _ one _ marker. Crow had four on his face alone, and several more on his back and legs. Trips to the store in Neo Domino already got him plenty of stares and glares, and Security watched his every move. Crow wouldn’t even think of taking his kids out with him under those circumstances. 

Even his first encounter with Zora didn’t exactly go smoothly.

_ “No, absolutely not! I can handle Jack living here with you, but do you need to bring a criminal in here as well?” Zora scowled while Crow leaned against the doorway.  _

_ “Zora, he’s my friend, and he is a part of my team. If Jack lives here, he should get to live here as well.” Yusei argued, standing between Zora and Crow. Crow didn’t move an inch further into the building. _

_ “You never told me he was covered in markers Yusei!” _

_ “I didn’t think it would be a problem since I have a marker as well.” Yusei tried to keep his voice level and calm, as he knew raising it would only hurt the situation further. _

_ “You’re different, I know the circumstances of yours. It was one time and we all make mistakes. Someone who is a troublemaker will only bring you down, and you should rethink who you bring onto your team.” She gripped her broom tightly, glaring past Yusei and down at Crow. _

_ “He’s done nothing wrong, Zora. He’s my friend and my teammate, and he’s helped me immensely.”  _

_ “Give it a rest, Yusei.” Crow called from behind him, turning his back to the both of them. “She doesn’t want a petty criminal living under her roof. It’s fine, isn’t it? The whole city is like this, nothing new about it.” Crow took a step out the door. “I’ll find someplace else.” And with that he left, not bothering to turn back as Yusei called his name. _

The first time Crow stole, he was simply starving on the street while Team Satisfaction was under way. He had no idea a rival gang member would rat him out to Security to try and hurt his team. The second time he stole, however, it was to support the kids, and he was prepared for the consequences. So long as his kids would get to eat, it didn’t matter if everyone looked down on him. So long as they could survive, he would take all the pain for them. 

Eventually though, Yusei managed to talk Zora into it. He was allowed to live there, so long as he paid rent, and under no circumstances got in trouble with the law. Crow agreed, hesitantly, and packed up his belongings for the move. 

“You don’t have much, do you?” Jack questioned, and Crow shook his head. “Good, it took us days to clear everything out of Yusei’s old hideout, and he tried to refuse throwing  _ anything _ out.” Crow laughed a bit, setting his box on the bed. 

All he had for himself was a few outfits, some clothes to sleep in (though before he commonly slept in yesterday’s clothes), and a few things he had found. Most of what he had belonged to the kids rather than to himself. All the cards, collectables, toys, and most of the clothing was to keep them happy and safe. He made due with what little he had.

Of course, being in a room of his own proved strange with so little belongings. Before, it was only two rooms: one for the kids, and a small room for himself divided from their make-shift shed they called home with an old door and old pieces of wood and metal. There, all he had was a mattress, an old safe he was able to crack the code on for his valuables, and a small broken dresser with one drawer for clothing as well as a few weapons that were now disposed of. Now, though, he had a full dresser, a wardrobe, a full bed with sheets, a nightstand, and a table. Even as he began unpacking his stuff, it felt rather empty. 

The last place he had lived in with close to this much room was when he shared a room with Yusei at Martha’s. And even then, they didn’t have much. 

After he began unpacking, though, he stumbled across the pictures he had found in Old Momentum. He must have wandered into the old office portion of the building, because there he found old paperwork, desks, and lots of pictures. Likely put there for comfort by the very people who died there.

Many he didn’t take. It didn’t feel right to steal a bunch of photographs from the dead, but he took several of interest out of the rubble.

A few he could clearly see were of Yusei and his family. It was no surprise there; he had learned Yusei’s father was the person who developed Momentum. As for the others, they were of the Dark Signer Yusei dueled against, Rudger Godwin, and his family.

It was Rudger Godwin, much more youthful and very much alive, along with what appeared to be his wife. In contrast to him, she had pale skin and dark hair. Some pictures were just of the two of them, but more often there were pictures of them with their child. Blonde hair, wrapped up in a pink blanket, then her first Hinamatsuri festival, then her first birthday. There were several more, not of holidays but just family pictures taken at home. He felt as though he should have left them there, if not for one detail.

It was that the child Rudger had had a very similar face to someone else he knew. It was hard to tell at first, but as the child got older, the face came to resemble someone he could recognize a bit more, as well as features in Rudger and his wife that gave it away.

Jack. 

Rudger’s child was Jack. 

He didn’t know if he would get another chance to be in Zero Reverse again, so he took the photographs with him just in case. Now that the war was over and he still had them, it seemed wrong to just throw them away. But what else could he do with them? Tell Jack the truth?

Well, he should do that. It would be for the best if Jack knew who his parents were when right now only Yusei seemed to have any idea. He also knew Jack was rather jealous of Yusei for that fact. Rex Godwin told Jack about Yusei’s past and family. While none of them knew their parents personally, Yusei at least knew who they  _ were. _

“Hey, Jack!” Crow called out, stepping down into the garage portion of the apartment.

“What is it?” Jack responded, sipping coffee from the couch while Yusei typed away at his computer. “Having trouble with something in your room?”

“I have something I found that I thought you would want to see.” Crow set them down on the coffee table in front of him, and that statement got both Jack and Yusei’s attention.

“Something I’d want to see…?” Yusei saved his code briefly before walking over as well. “What could I find interesting about some dirty old photographs….” His voice trailed off as he saw it was Rudger. He was familiar with his face after Godwin had shown him it once. It was just as a precaution in the event Jack had to face him alone. It was only after their final duel with Rex Godwin he learn Rudger was his brother.

Yusei raised an eyebrow as Jack looked through them, setting a few out on the table as he went, checking the back for dates. A few had them, though many did not. His eyebrows furrowed going through the pictures of the child alongside Rudger and his wife, the Hinamatsuri festival, and the two taken on the child’s first and second birthdays. 

“... Rudger Godwin and Hera Atlas, huh?” Jack commented. “An interesting couple, I can see…” Both Yusei and Crow could see he was visibly upset but attempting to hide it. “I don’t see why I would want to see old pictures of them, now that both of them are long dead.”

“Jack…” Crow bit his lip, regretting showing Jack the photographs. Maybe it was better if Jack never knew his parent’s identities, and Crow took this knowledge to the grave. “Jack, I’m sorry about this--” 

“It’s fine.” Jack began to pick them all up. “I just… I think I need a bit of time to myself, is all.” He then stood, and took all the photographs up to his room, leaving his coffee behind on the table. 

“Where did you find those exactly?” Yusei asked Crow.

“Old Momentum. I found a few pictures of your family in there too. Most of the photographs though were of people I didn’t recognize, so I left them where I found them.” Crow wouldn’t mention the lone photograph he took that was neither Rudger’s nor Fudou Hakase’s. That he intended to keep to himself, tucked away in one of his drawers upstairs.

\--

Jack looked through the photographs more closely in the comfort of his own room, his eyes barely fighting back tears.

Godwin knew then, the whole time. How could he not know Jack was his nephew when he had the same name? Maybe he said nothing of it in an attempt not to sway Jack to following in his father’s footsteps? Maybe he was too embarrassed for not remaining in Satellite to care for his surviving family member? Or perhaps it was just too cruel, to tell Jack that the Crimson Dragon had chosen him to fight on its behalf after it already claimed his father’s life and led him to destruction. It was too cruel to tell Jack he might very well have to duel and kill his own father.

It still didn’t make it right, though, to lie to him about this. To pretend as though it didn’t happen or never mattered. Maybe it didn’t matter, not to Godwin. He still saw Jack as nothing more than a pawn to gain control over the Crimson Dragon.

_ “You’re like a son to me, actually. The son I never had.” _ Jack remembered how his heart skipped a beat hearing Godwin say that with a pat on his shoulder as he left through the door. 

“... Why…?” 

That question, however, went unanswered.


	3. Letters to an Old Friend

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Crow never really showed any powers in canon, which I found odd. We got to see examples of everyone else's signer abilities, and it felt weird Crow never had any at all. So we gave him some.
> 
> And tried to make Pearson more relevant beyond retconning Crow's background. In the Mockingbird AU Crow attempted to build his own D-wheel but struggled, and Pearson stepped in helping him along with the kids, before ultimately dying and leaving Crow to finish it on his own.
> 
> Bonus points for old ass meta mythology theories. If you remember aiapaecrow please hmu

It wasn’t easy to start up your own delivery business, but Crow didn’t exactly have a lot of options open in terms of jobs. The rest of Jack’s money from his time as King had been spent on paying all three of their rents to Zora for the first four months (which Zora of course assumed Yusei had paid) and buying the rest of their equipment to improve their D-wheels. This only left limited time for Crow to start working on rent money as well as money needed in the WRGP.

However, there was an untapped business in making deliveries around Satellite and between Satellite and Neo Domino. Not many people still wanted to brave the trip, and no mailing agencies would deliver there at all. With a lot of paperwork filed and a few negotiations from Ushio and Yusei, Crow was open for business temporarily, at least for the next year or so till the WRGP began.  
  


Martha and the kids had even made him a jacket to go along with it, and Martha gave him new gloves as a Christmas present. He didn’t look the best, but he certainly looked more official. Hell, with his helmet on, sometimes you didn’t really notice his markers!

One thing he did notice lately, though, was a few odd things happening. For starters, his arm had a dull ache in it, though when he checked the Crimson Dragon’s mark, it was still there. Nothing glowing or out of ordinary, just a dull ache. He didn’t think much of it however, continuing on with his deliveries.

The second thing that started happening were crows flocking around Poppo Time’s square and around the route he frequently took on deliveries. Perhaps it was a new flock that had moved into the city, but it was still an odd coincidence that they were suddenly where Crow was.

But it only progressed. The birds loved roosting on Poppo Time’s building, much to the annoyance of Zora, who shooed the birds away. They also enjoyed trying to come into the apartment through the windows and garage, taping their beaks along walls and tables until someone finally chased them out. 

Their infestation of (arguably cute) black birds was getting annoying, as were the jokes Jack couldn’t stop spouting.

While it was annoying, Crow could put up with birds and an annoying ache in his arm. What  _ was _ getting hard to ignore was now a growing headache he always got in the afternoons. At least he wasn’t doing deliveries then, but it was getting troublesome to have to lay down in bed and wait for the migraine to pass when he could be helping with the engine development along with Yusei and Jack. If it continued, he’d have to try and find a doctor who would taken in someone with as many marks as he had.

\--

One such afternoon, Crow had left the window open for some air. The fresh air in late winter always made his head feel a bit better. But he had neglected to account for the ‘visitors’ the apartment had been getting. All too soon he heard that familiar tapping noise of a peck on his table, and he rolled over to find a crow perched on his dresser.

“Oh son of a-- Get out, get out of here!” the yelling made his headache worse, but the bird flapped its wings, flying to his nightstand instead. 

**“Wait, wait!”** a voice called out, echoing through Crow’s head. **“Don’t make me leave, we need to talk to you!”** Crow was taken aback, stumbling back onto his bed at the voice suddenly ringing through his ear. To top it off, his mark began aching again, this time much stronger than before.

“What the hell?! God dammit, now I’m hearing things?!” 

**“No. You are our new master. We came a long way to serve you. We were sent by our God upon your victory with the Crimson Dragon.”** The mark seemed to be reacting to the conversation, though it did not glow, and no one else seemed to be feeling it. The crow however hopped onto his bed, coming closer. 

“Your master? Your god? What the hell is going on here?” He tried to keep his voice down for now. In the event he was hallucinating, he’d rather no one else find out at the very least. 

The crow closed its eyes in response, and spread its wings a bit in seemingly annoyance.  **“I see. He cannot contact you at this time, nor can the Crimson Dragon yet, so the circumstances of your win have not been discussed.”**

“My win? You mean the battle with Godwin, right?” Crow definitely didn’t know there were ‘circumstances’ of that battle he would need to hear. At least, not from a bird. 

**“Yes. The battle was extremely close, and unlike any battle the Crimson Dragon had fought before. He was being manipulated by a Dark Signer, who had forced a mark into his control.”** The crow now took a seat, nestled comfortably on Crow’s pillow. 

“Yeah, yeah, I know all of that. I was  _ there _ , after all.” Crow rolled his eyes, and the bird’s feathers ruffled in annoyance.

**“I was not finished. It is extremely difficult to change an owner of a mark. The Crimson Dragon normally evaluated each owner carefully, sometimes for years or their entire lives before settling on an owner.”** It closed its eyes once more. **“Changing an owner takes a tremendous amount of energy. So the dragon had no choice but to ask for help from our master. Our master agreed on the condition you would become under his influence and control, alongside the Crimson Dragon.”**

“So wait, you’re telling me that damn dragon auctioned me off to win a war? To what  _ god? _ An Earthbound God?!” The crow was not impressed, rising from its seat and flapping its wings. 

**“Do not insult our master in that manner! He is not an Earthbound God; he is a neutral party in the war whom can take whatever side he wishes, or none at all. He chose to help out the Crimson Dragon, his flesh and blood brother. And he did not ‘auction you off’. Our master had his eye on you for many years without the tools needed to make you a ‘Signer’ of his.”** The bird drew closer, folding its wings once more. **“It was he who protected you from illness, starvation, and death while you were young. It was he who led you to one of the Crimson Dragon’s signers to save your life, and it was he who saved you from certain death battling a Dark Signer with no powers to protect you from their wrath.”**

“... Sounds like he’s a bit overbearing.” Crow rubbed the back of his head, as the bird all but sat in his lap.

**“Well for you, the only human to carry his blood anywhere near this war, he was eager to ensure you would be safe from harm.”**

“C-Carry his blood? Is there something I need to know about here?!” Crow was alarmed at the suggestion, now suddenly afraid he was some sort of demigod-turned-Signer and had never known it.

**“Your heritage. Your mother was from the lands we come from, Peru. There our master started his own people, the Moche. And from his people your mother is descended. Thus, you are the distant child of our master, and now we serve you on his behalf.”** The bird gave an awkward dip of the head before raising it and giving a soft chatter of a caw; several crows outside gave a more resounding, echoing caw in return.

“I… I don’t exactly understand what that entails. I’m sort of his… human descendant and so he’s giving me a murder of crows to follow me around and lecture me?” Crow was pleased to find his headache was beginning to subside as the crow explained everything, however.

**“We are not ordinary crows. We are messengers. We were born in the underworld and can travel anywhere you wish. We can carry messages across your world to the dead and to the gods themselves. We can view anything you wish, anywhere in the world, and report to you what we see.”** The black bird now jumped over to the nightstand.  **“As you learn more, you may even learn to see things through our eyes. Then you can see many things throughout the world and afterlife.”**

“That’s… Really interesting.” He rubbed his head once more, watching the bird flutter about his room curiously. “I don’t know exactly what I will do with that ability, but I will keep it in mind.”

**“That’s all our master wished for you to know. We are no strangers to watching you, as we’ve taken care of you and watched you on his behalf. However, it wasn’t till now that your powers through your mark have finally begun awakening, and you could hear our voices.”** The crow hopped onto his window sill, looking back at him. **“It will not be long until you can hear his voice for yourself, as well as the Crimson Dragon’s voice, but for now, we will leave your residence unless otherwise needed. Call for us when you need to use us.”** And with that, the bird flew off, caws echoing through the plaza once more.

Crow wasn’t certain what he should make of that whole encounter. He wasn’t entirely sure it was real. But for now he’d head downstairs and work on the engine a bit more. Tomorrow, he’d test it out.

\--

The next afternoon, after a few trips to spend some of the extra money he got on a few new pieces of clothing (some cheap shirts and more pants and underwear, only necessities), he went straight to his room to put them up. There, he looked out the window. Seeing the bird staring him down from the neighbor’s roof.

He was curious though, if the whole encounter was real. There was only one way to find out. He opened the window in his bedroom and gave two short whistles. Two birds instantly flew to his windowsill, cawing softly in response.

**“We are here. What do you need?”** Crow drummed his fingers along the dresser, trying to determine a task they could complete in order for him to believe they were real.

“How would I go about… sending a message to the underworld, exactly?” The birds chittered before one hopped onto his dresser. 

**“Paper and pen will survive the journey with us. We will bring you back whatever the recipient sends in return, or tell you if they declined a response.”** The crow looked up at him.  **“Be careful however, contacting the dead. The ancient may not respond in a language you can understand, and at times the dead have answers you may not like hearing.”**

“I’ll take my chances, then.” With that, he pulled out a sheet of paper and a pen. 

There was one person who was dead he knew he wanted to contact. It would be difficult to write to him, but he would manage. This might be a good way to reach closure as well, if it did work.

_ “Pearson, if you can get this, please respond. I want to talk to you. I want to see if you can receive this message,” _ was all Crow wrote before folding it and handing it to the crow. 

“Take this to Robert Pearson in the afterlife. One that lived in Satellite.” The blackbird took the letter into its beak before taking off out the window and finally flying in the direction of Satellite. 

“... How long do you think that will take?” he asked the remaining crow that still stood on his windowsill. 

**“Perhaps a few days. We will have to find the recipient first. The afterlife is a large place.”** Crow nodded in response, still looking out at where the bird flew.

Only time will tell now, wouldn’t it? 

\--

It was in fact several days later, Crow found a bird tapping on his window, another with a folded up letter in it’s mouth. He opened the window, welcoming the birds into the room. One settled on his bed while the other handed him the letter.

The paper looked a bit more aged and even hand-made. Nothing like the simple note paper he sent with the first crow. When he unfolded it, he was surprised there was quite a lot written in response.

_ “Crow, where are you exactly? I received your letter fine. How on Earth did you die so early, and where can I find you to meet up? Additionally, how are you using the birds to send letters? Please write back to me immediately. I want to stay in contact with you and guide you through here any way I can.” _ The penmanship was familiar enough to bring tears to Crow’s eyes. His mentor was worried about him, and thought he was dead, but he was able to talk to him in some way.

Crow took out a much larger sheet of paper to write his response.

_ “I’m not dead, I am still alive. There was something called a ‘Signer War’ here on Earth, but we-- the good guys-- were able to win it. Everyone is safe and sound, and the kids are alright.” _ He paused at that, feeling his heart clench from the fact he had nearly lost all of them in that damn war.  _ “I’m now able to use these birds to communicate, and I wanted to see if I could talk to you. You were the only person I could think of to write to. I needed to ask you a few questions and get a few answers I needed to from you.” _

With that, he gave the letter back and let the crow make its journey to the intended owner. 

\--

They wrote back and forth for a while, now each journey taking only about a day and a half for a bird to make. Much faster than Crow was expecting, as it was faster than sending mail in real life. It was almost like face to face conversation, or at the very least, the closest he would get for now. 

It had taken several weeks of letters, explaining the Signer war, explaining the Crimson Dragon, talk of Yusei and Jack and the WRGP, as well as what Pearson was up to in the afterlife, before Crow finally asked about the circumstances of his death. He tried not to make accusations or seem upset, but he really needed to hear about it from Pearson since he died so suddenly and tragically. 

_ “About my death… Don’t worry. I didn’t suffer for long. Immediately after you left, the smoke I believe knocked me out, and when I came to, I was long dead. I’m happy to hear your D-wheel we worked on together, our decks, and all of the kids were safe and sound. Working on your D-wheel with the kids were the happiest moments of my life. All of you were like my younger siblings.”  _ Tears began to hit the page as Crow read it, unable to hold back his emotions.  _ “I’m deeply upset I couldn’t guide you any further or protect you from harm. I understand what trouble you went through having a marker on your face.” _ Crow snorted, though he ultimately decided Pearson didn’t need to hear about his many arrests by security. 

_ “My death though was an accident. Do not let anyone else tell you otherwise. Don’t blame yourself for the accident, or even let Bolger blame himself for the accident, wherever he may be. I’m at peace now, and I hold no grudges and understand no one was to blame for what happened that night.”  _ Crow rubbed his thumb along the paper.  _ “Thank you, though, for talking to me. I’m glad you asked to talk to me, above all else.”  _ Crow’s eyes watered a bit more.  _ “You were always like a younger brother to me, someone I wanted to protect and guide. All of the kids were like my siblings, but you most of all were someone I wanted to be there for all your life. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to do that. But I will help you in any way I can now. I’m so proud of everything you’ve done.”  _

Crow took a deep breath, reading over the letter a few more times before he tucked it into his dresser. 

He was relieved that Pearson wasn’t angry over talking about his death, nor angry about his death itself. For a while, he had a terrible thought that someone who spited Pearson had set the place on fire with him in it. Crow had blamed himself for a while, and still did on occasion, for failing to save Pearson that night. But he was alright. He was happy.

Pearson was  _ proud _ of him.

Teary-eyed, he wrote a response to Pearson with a smile, informing him he’d send him letters from time to time, keeping him updated with his life so he wouldn’t miss out. The birds would carry them to Pearson, and Crow asked them to check up on Pearson periodically to see if he had any letters to send to him. It wasn’t too hard of a task for the little birds it seemed, and they did so with glee.

\--

Once Crow retired that evening however, a couple of crows perched on his windowsill, watching him sleep.

**“How long until you think his hunger will awaken?”** One asked the other.

**“The Head Signer’s hunger has already awoken. The claw, however, is no longer killing. The King Signer’s hunger will likely be next. As for the Tail…”** Its feathers ruffled from the chill of the night air.  **“There may be no telling when his hunger will awaken. Several months down the line I suppose.”**

**“Lord Aiapaec hungers for blood however. With him influencing our new master, how long then?”** The one crow decided to groom its companion the slightest while they were out there having a discussion no one else could hear.

**“Lord Aiapaec will make his move in due time. Until the Crimson Dragon regains some strength and is able to open the Signers’ minds to his voice, then Aiapaec cannot command him. But the Gods will find a way to push the Signers to their paths.”** It turned it’s back to the window, signaling they would be taking off. **“After all, it is the fate of a signer to consume the living. There is no escaping it if they plan to keep this world alive. And it is in their nature to lust for blood and flesh. I have faith he will be supplying Aiapaec with blood in due time.”**


	4. God's Calling

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing omnipotent, all-powerful beings is hard. This is mostly because I write in memes, and from what I understand, gods do not generally speak in those. A tragedy, I know.
> 
> Anyway, enjoy the author change.

“One, two, three...” The sound of mechanical clicking filled the empty garage as a nut was tightened. “...four, five...” A wrench was released and placed on the ground, and with a yawn, Yuusei stretched his arms over his head. He’d been up all night tinkering with his d-wheel, attempting to improve some of the smaller parts while he took a break from the engine program to think. He’d been in a rut for a few days now, unable to make any significant progress on the program that was meant to let his team ride through the WRGP. He couldn't think of any new ideas to try in hopes of breaking new ground. In fact, he had only been able to consistently think of one thing for the past few days.

His stomach let out a long growl, and he let his body flop onto the floor with a sigh.

The only thing running through Yuusei's mind for quite awhile - even overriding his awareness of the many blackbirds attempting to nest within the garage - was his requirement to eat people, a task bestowed upon him by the Crimson Dragon himself. He was still reeling from the bizarre god-given command, unable to grasp the full extent of it while still getting a good base-value shock. To consume the flesh of another human was one of the worst crimes against humanity that he could think of, and it was furthermore outright disrespectful to a corpse in the first place, a form of desecration. After the war with the Dark Signers, Yuusei had found that he'd developed an appreciation for the dead, and so the thought of having to do something so vile to a deceased body... It was disgusting. Disturbing, even.

Despite these thoughts, Yuusei was fully aware of his avidness to feed whenever he went to visit Saiga, of how he would swallow entire chunks of flesh with little thought or awareness of his surroundings until he was full. He still couldn't believe his friends' boundless kindness - Saiga and Yanagi both - or their attempts to accept what was happening to him without looking back. It was astonishing to him that anyone would stick their neck so far out as to offer him human organs or hide a dead body. They only had to worry about him coming over once a week, and he didn't seem to require a visit any earlier than closing, but he simply couldn't fathom why anyone would help a friend commit cannibalism, legitimate explanation for it or otherwise. And for what? Some dragon in the sky that couldn't even talk to him properly?

**"For the world, Yuusei."**

Yuusei snorted. "Right," he muttered, "sure it is."

His brows furrowed after a moment of silence, a sudden alarm seeming to go off in his head. He was alone in the garage, and he hardly recognised the voice, but yet he could've swore he'd heard it somewhere else before. Was that...?

 _The Crimson Dragon...?_ Yuusei nearly breathed, not wanting to risk someone overhearing him. Just because no one was home now didn't mean that someone wouldn't come in later. He waited for a moment, wondering if he would hear any other words, but when nothing responded, he decided to test his luck anyway. "Crimson Dragon...?" he spoke up, raising his voice a little. "You there?"

 **"You don't need to speak aloud, mortal,"** the Dragon's voice boomed in Yuusei's head. It wasn't a physical voice, one without distance, and yet it had volume and force unlike anything he had ever heard before. In a way, it reminded him of how Jack spoke, only this voice was deeper and calmer. If the source wasn't such an omnipotent being, it might've been relaxing to listen to.

In any case, a conversation had begun, and who was he to ignore a god? "Well, alright then..." he mumbled somewhat crossly, deciding to speak aloud anyway despite the lack of necessity to do so. "So you can hear me, then? Anything I say? Or anything I think, for that matter."

 **"That is correct,"** the Dragon replied, his smooth voice pleasing to the ears. **"For awhile, it seemed as though you were having some difficulties hearing me, but currently, it appears that is no longer as serious of an issue as before. A positive development."**

"No longer _as_ serious?" Yuusei questioned, sitting up with a frown. He folded his arms across his chest, interested to hear more from this deity. "What do you mean by that? Is there still a problem that I should know about?"

 **"Although you are capable of hearing my words,"** the Crimson Dragon explained, **"I still require an...** **_impractical_ ** **amount of energy to speak to you in this manner. To receive this degree of stress from simple** **_communication_ ** **is..."**

"Ridiculous?" Yuusei suggested. A low grunt in reply gave him the idea that yes, that was the word the god was looking for. "Well, why is it so hard for you?"

Yuusei felt a peculiar chill run up his spine when he heard the deity's answer. **"I currently have no energy to spare to do these sorts of things. I must be selective with whom I talk to or otherwise waste what little power I have at my disposal."**

Yuusei swallowed thickly. He felt as though he shouldn't dare to ask why it was that the Dragon was so weak at this time, but he indulged his own curiosities anyway. "Why don't you have more energy now?"

The Crimson Dragon huffed. **"The Signer War several months ago has drained me; not only was my power at the mercy of the Dark Signers, but I had to switch a mark in order to free myself from their grasp as well."** Yuusei raised an eyebrow as he continued. **"I required the assistance of another god in order to take your red-headed companion under my wing."**

"There are other gods?" Yuusei followed up, wanting more answers on that topic.  
  
**"Of course there are!"** the Crimson Dragon thundered. After a moment of pause, he composed himself again. **"But I currently wish to speak only of matters of utmost importance, and the existence of other gods hardly warrants a conversation at this time. I have little desire to drain myself from a petty chat."**

Yuusei wasn't pleased by this response, but he knew that the Crimson Dragon was right. If a god ran out of energy - the god that protected the entire world, no less - who knew what would happen? It wasn't a risk that sounded like a whole lot of fun to take. "Alright, then..." he mumbled with a soft sigh. He'd have to ask again later, he decided.

 **"I wasn't finished yet, boy. Don't forfeit your attention to something else yet, especially when** **_you_ ** **are also at fault for my severe lack of power.”**

Yuusei’s eyes widened at this seemingly-baseless declaration. How could he have been impairing the Crimson Dragon’s str-

 **“You haven’t been eating enough for me,”** the beast’s demanding voice echoed in the head Signer’s mind. Right, thought-reading abilities.

Yuusei was taken aback by his sudden interjection, and so he shook his head. “I-I haven’t been eating enough?” he asked, feeling as though he was beginning to shiver. “B-but I’ve been eating human flesh for you every week!” he objected, concern of someone walking in all but gone. “Yanagi said that would be enough! Is it not?”

 **“Hardly,”** the Crimson Dragon replied crossly, clearly not pleased by Yuusei’s outburst. **“If you and your Signers’ current situation were like any other that’s occurred in the past, then perhaps you eating weekly wouldn’t be so detrimental. Now, you’re the only Signer out of** **_five_ ** **that is eating for me. That will not provide enough energy for me for long. You need to eat more.”**

“I-I can’t do that!” Yuusei retorted, his hands balling into fists in frustration. “Eating every week is hard enough! Saiga and Yanagi have to put up with this enough as it is anyway! They can’t afford to feed me every day!”

 **“** **_Then hunt_ ** **.”**

Yuusei’s mind fell completely silent.

The leader wasn’t entirely sure what to say in response to that. Eat _more_? How much more? He wanted to guess every day, but he also didn’t want to end up presenting himself with the reality of actually having to do that. And to hunt... To go out and kill human beings with his own hands. He didn’t think he was up for the task at all. The mere thought of it made his heart sink deep into his abdomen, and yet it reminded him of how hungry he really felt. Upon hearing another loud, pained growl, Yuusei rubbed his stomach tenderly, groaning from the discomfort. He guessed he should go get something to eat eventually.

As he turned to examine his d-wheel once more, he heard the jingle of the garage door’s bell followed by footsteps. There was a thump from a body jumping over the railing and onto the floor, and before he knew it, there was a hand on his shoulder. “Hey, Yuus’,” Crow greeted. “You look a little distracted. Is something wrong?”

“Crow, you just got home,” Yuusei grumbled, shooing Crow’s hand away. “Can you at least wait ten minutes to get on my case?”

The redhead rolled his eyes and huffed, but he walked away in the end anyway to leave the mechanic alone. He stopped in his tracks as Yuusei’s stomach let out yet another long growl, and he couldn’t help but snicker.

“Huhhh, guess I should start dinner after a shower, shouldn’t I?” he joked, shooting a grin at Yuusei. His playful sneer remained even as a wrench was launched his way, although the blackbird perched on his head flew away to sit on the windowsill.

Yuusei let out a lengthy, exasperated sigh, rubbing the bridge of his nose. He just wanted something to eat to get this over with.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just for the record, if anyone gets //that// tired of us using Yusei/Yuusei, I'll edit my chapters so they all read as 'Yusei', but only for these collaborative chapter fics.


	5. Kidnapped

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aki actually gets to do more in this universe. Because I like her a lot and she deserves it.  
> Take a seat Yusei.
> 
> -trickstarbrave
> 
>  
> 
> Note that there are mentions of drugging and sedative use. It's nothing too bad, just proceed with a little caution if that makes you uncomfortable.
> 
> -theartisticfool

Yusei opened his eyes slowly, groaning from the pains that quaked through his body, from the ache in his head he was certain would leave him with a nasty goose-egg for days to the familiar, agonizing pain of the Crimson Dragon’s hunger.

“...Where am I?” Yusei groaned. Raising his head made him feel dizzy. It wasn’t from the head injury, but it was slightly off from the usual feeling of the Crimson Dragon demanding food.

“Yusei, it seems you’re awake,” a voice called out, and Yusei glanced at the screen. The change in light let him see that his D-wheel was present, but looking directly at it made him nauseous.

“W… What is going on?” His words were slurred slightly, and he could distinctly feel a heaviness in his body that was completely off. He felt like if he stood, he would certainly fall, especially considering the soft bumping and rocking the container seemed to be making. Was he in a truck? 

“I represent a company for riding duelists, and we have taken an interest in you.” Yusei didn’t respond, only weakly glaring at them. “I see the medication has taken effect. Do not worry, it will wear off in a few hours once we have you to our hideout safe and sound.”

“What is it you want with me?” His words were still slurred despite how he tried to speak them carefully. His body just didn’t seem to cooperate, and it was hard to even think straight. He could vaguely remember what had occurred before. He was on his way to Saiga’s when he got a house call for a repair. It seemed simple enough, and they needed the money, so he took it. He told Saiga he would only be roughly an hour late, maybe less. Once he arrived, someone inside yelled out in pain, so he rushed in to check on them. There, he was ambushed, and he blacked out, presumably because of the blow to the head he took.

“You see, you are an exceptional duelist. Even though you do not take the title of King, you still are the King of Neo Domino. You won the Fortune Cup despite being from Satellite, and you made a good show out of building that bridge with your friends. You are not only highly skilled, but you are an important figure and someone we want on our team. You are to compete with our highly skilled team whose decks have been made specifically with you in mind to be the ace. With you on our team, we shall get plenty of sponsorships and win.” The man was nearly cackling, a sinister smirk on his face.

“... I have… no interest in your deal. I intend to enter it with my friends, Jack and Crow. Nothing you could offer me will change my mind.” The man didn’t seem deterred in the slightest, and the Crimson Dragon growled lowly in the back of Yusei’s mind.

“I’m well aware of your ‘bonds’ or whatever it is you call them. The point is I have no need to convince you of anything. You  _ will _ join our team.” His smirk quickly grew to a sadistic grin. “At the location we will be taking you to, we have an entire team of highly trained psychological surgeons who will take full control of you and make you our winning ace, whether you agree to it or not! And there is no way for you to fight back either. We have everything we need: you, your deck, and your D-wheel. Now it is just a matter of time until you arrive at our hideout and we take full control.” He laughed heartily, satisfied with his own plan. 

**“Unacceptable,”** the Crimson Dragon growled out in Yusei’s mind. The communication still wasn’t something he was used to, and combined with the drugs coursing through his veins and the ache of hunger, it only made the situation worse. Yusei held his head and groaned, trying to prop himself up along a wall so he could avoid rolling around in the truck.  **“Something like this I cannot allow. I’m informing the other Signers of your location.”** The Crimson Dragon would have done so sooner if he had known what the result of this would be. However, he could not afford to lose his head signer and the only one who was eating. If he was being controlled by someone else, he would be unable to eat or follow the Crimson Dragon’s commands.

* * *

“Have you seen him, Crow?” Roughly an hour ago, they got an anonymous call that Yusei had been kidnapped. They were skeptical, but Aki took the call very seriously, worried about his recent behavior and now that something had happened to him. Crow and Jack left on their D-wheels while Mikage from Security took Aki in her car to go searching for him.

“No, I haven’t.” He was stopped for now, checking in with the birds to see if they had seen Yusei before he picked up the call from Jack. They, too, had come up empty. “I don’t know where he’d be.” He sent them to check Saiga’s first, and then around the neighborhood Yusei said he was going to be in. No sign of him or his D-wheel. 

They would still be skeptical, assuming he might be fine and this was a trap, if not for the fact several minutes ago their marks began to glow. They had a dull ache, signifying Yusei in particular was in danger. 

“Well we have no time to waste, we have to keep looking! If we wait too long, who knows what could happen to him!” Aki was very worried now, holding her arm protectively as though it would be soothed by her touch. 

Yusei had risked his life to save her, and she felt indebted to him. He was the one who helped her out of Divine’s grasp twice and saved the bond with her parents she believed was irreparable. He was the only person who saw her as she was and not just a monster. He saw all of her pain and conflicting emotions, including the sadistic side to her she developed to cope, and accepted all of it. Aki owed it to him enough to save him. If anything happened, she would be unable to forgive herself. 

However, Jack’s response came in rather fuzzy before the signal cut out entirely.

“What’s going on?” Aki asked, anxiety welling up in her stomach.

“We’re being jammed,” came Mikage’s reply as she attempted to change the channel to get a better signal.

“... Fudou Yusei is heading North on the Blue Hill Route in West Valley. You should hurry…” a man’s voice spoke, neither Crow nor Jack.

“Who is this?” Mikage asked, thoroughly angered. “This is Security’s private channel; it is illegal to interfere with it!” However, no response came. Still, Mikage gave an angry sigh and drove towards the route she was instructed to. “... Even if it is a trap, we should ensure Yusei is safe, above all else.” Aki nodded.

“Please.”

* * *

Crow gritted his teeth, groaning when the signal wouldn’t connect. Was it someone who jammed it? Someone must be interfering with their ability to communicate, either to isolate them or distract them long enough to get away with Yusei.

“Go, find him. If the mark is glowing, can’t you find him easier?” The birds nodded before they took off, scattering in multiple directions in the air. Crow took off in the opposite direction Yusei got the house call from in hopes that was where they were taking him. 

Jack continued to drive, angered that the signal was jammed. However, it seemed that the further he drove, the less the mark ached. He was getting further and further away, but he had no idea where he should go.

* * *

“We’re getting closer,” Aki commented as they began on the route to where they were instructed. “Yusei should be somewhere near here.” Aki intended to say more, however her vision blurred, and she softly heard the Crimson Dragon’s cry in her head while her eyes finally focused on one vehicle. It was a truck normally used for deliveries, and there was nothing particularly conspicuous about it, but the mark’s ache grew stronger.

“... Take the lower route, please.” She was hoping this gut feeling was right, that Yusei was located in the truck.

After a few moments, they were down on the lower route, quickly behind the truck. Just in time it seemed, as it was taking the road out of town. 

“A bit closer,” Aki instructed, standing from her seat. As they got closer, pulling up beside the vehicle, it was easy to see there was no driver. Aki gasped in surprise, but that fact coupled with the mark aching strongly now confirmed that Yusei was inside. 

“I can take care of this.” Mikage decelerated, falling behind the truck once more while Aki slipped on her duel disk. Mikage seemed worried while Aki activated Rose Tentacles. “... Don’t worry, I have control of my powers now. They won’t be out of control.” Sure enough, Rose Tentacles listened to Aki’s command and climbed on top of the truck. There, it materialized fully and began beating the doors, trying to weaken them enough to pull them open.

“Hm..?” the leader questioned. Yusei groaned, feeling the truck rocking more along his back as the monster tried to beat the doors down. It was not helping his nausea, and he was finding it hard to stay awake. 

“Yusei!” Aki called out as an opening was made before instructing Rose Tentacles to rip the doors clean off. By now the boss was angry.

“Fine then Yusei, if you will not be coming to our hideout, you and your D-wheel can end here.” He then cut the transmission to the monitor and instructed one of his workers to follow through with their other plan. If Yusei would not come with them due to his companion’s interference, both Yusei and his D-wheel would drown at the bottom of the ocean. If he didn’t die, he would certainly be injured; and his D-wheel would be lost at sea, never to be found again. If his team intended to join, they would have to build him a new D-wheel from scratch in under a year. There was no way anyone would be able to save both Yusei and the motorcycle. 

“Yusei!” Aki called out again, seeing Yusei was unable to stand. The truck was trying desperately to shake Rose Tentacles off, so with one final move, Aki grabbed onto one of the vines, and it swung her into the truck. She landed a bit unsteadily just as Rose Tentacles fell and deactivated. “Are you alright?” She instantly rushed to his side, only to see his eyes were cloudy and that he was hardly able to sit up. “... Don’t worry, I’ll get you out of here.” Unfortunately, she had no plan, and the remote driver of the truck was trying vigorously to knock the truck through the railing along the highway.

Aki noticed the D-wheel, frowning. She could simply use one of her monsters to carry Yusei and her out of the truck, but it would be nearly impossible for the heavy bike to be carried out as well, at least unharmed. She couldn’t leave it behind either. Yusei would be crushed, and the plan to enter the WRGP would be halted if they had to build Yusei another D-wheel. Additionally, she knew he built it in Satellite with his friends, and nothing would ever replace it. Tournament or not, it needed to survive as well.

She lifted up the seat, finding Yusei’s helmet and a spare inside. That was good, they would both need helmets for what she was planning on doing. She slid one on her own head, checking to be sure her hair wouldn’t get in the way of her vision. Next, she tucked her own duel disk under the seat and closed it. She wobbled as she walked, her anxiety only growing as the car got more and more aggressive as it knocked against the side of the road. 

Even more so, Mikage was no longer tailing behind them. One of the doors was missing, and it must have hit her vehicle, stopping her. She briefly hoped Mikage was alright before helping Yusei to stand.

“Come on, Yusei. We need to get out of here quickly.” Yusei groaned in response, slowly shuffling his feet towards the D-wheel. 

Sitting on a D-wheel was an experience itself. Yusei was behind her, safely propped up between her back and the seat. She put both feet on the brakes before clumsily knocking her knees together; her face flushed in embarrassment. At least no one was on the road, and they wouldn’t have to see her underwear if she slipped up. All she had to do was drive them out of here and get to Mikage. There they could treat Yusei and wait for help.

She nervously turned the D-wheel on, looking at the controls. Yusei, with the last bit of his strength, pointed at the gears around Aki at the screen. 

“Put it in drive… like a car…. Go slow on the gas, and don’t… take your hands off the handles. The right handle is gas, and…. the brakes are…. at your feet. Don’t brake fast…” He wanted to say more, but he had no more strength. If they were going to die, it was either going to be by drowning or trying to escape, and he’d prefer escaping. 

Aki nervously put it in drive, feeling the kickstand retract. She put one foot on the truck to stabilize it before nervously hitting the gas and feeling the engine rev, taking off towards the door. 

Just in time, too, for as soon as they left the entrance to the truck, the truck broke through the guard on the road, falling into the sea. A second later and they wouldn’t have been able to make it out. The engine was strong, however, and difficult to control. As well, Aki noticed they were not the only ones on the road. Someone else was driving and immediately requested a duel. 

The D-wheel went into autopilot swiftly, asking if Aki wished to engage. It was good, since Aki nearly hit the railing in an attempt to drive. The duelist was tailing them now, having flipped around to pursue her.

“I am aware you don’t know how to drive. That is Yusei’s D-wheel, not yours. So let me assist you for the time being. Duel me until we get to safety, otherwise you will crash it once it gets out of autopilot. In the shape Yusei is in, as well as the fact it’s only one seat, the two of you won’t do well in a crash.” Aki gritted her teeth.

“Fine then, I will duel you!” However, it wasn’t her deck in the disk, it was Yusei’s, and she had never experienced a riding duel in her life. Even if it was on autopilot, she had only watched riding duels. She had no experience even in training for them. Still, she accepted the duel, feeling Yusei’s heavy breathing against her back as he fell unconscious.

* * *

**“Well, it seems you were brought to safety. Somewhat, at least,”** the Crimson Dragon scoffed. Yusei recognized the location as inside his mind where the dragon attempted to speak with him regularly. Since he had only ever been here previously in his dreams, he assumed he fell unconscious.

“That’s good then. I was worried Aki wouldn’t be able to drive.” 

**“She can’t. Someone put her into autopilot. For now, we shall see what happens, but right now I must speak with you.”** Yusei cringed, but he was thankful he and Aki were still alright. He wondered who had put them into autopilot. Was it someone from that organization chasing them down in a duel? 

“What do we need to talk about, then?” 

**“About this tournament and the beings who are attacking you.”** Yusei frowned, even physically in his body.  **“What they are, I am not entirely sure. What I am certain of is that they are far too powerful and are unlike anything I have ever encountered.”**

“Are they different gods then?” Yusei asked, worried they would have another Signer war on their hands once more.

**“No, nothing of that sort, though they do not appear to be human either.”** The Crimson Dragon seemed contemplative.  **“I have never seen anything like them before. They have souls and limits like humans, but they are not. They do not have hearts or flesh that can fuel me, that much I can tell.”**

“Could.... they all be machines then?” Yusei questioned, remembering the mangled remains of the first Ghost they found. If that was a machine, it was a possibility that more intelligent machines built it. But where could they have come from? Who could have built them? 

**“I’m uncertain, but their influence seems deep in society. It’s difficult for me to sense something untouched by their hands. Like ripples across a pond, they cause waves in the universe around them in such odd ways.”** Yusei raised an eyebrow curiously at the dragon now.

“Across the universe?” The Crimson Dragon sighed.

**“I am surprised at how humans seem to grow smarter in some regards but fail to teach information like this as generations pass.”** The Crimson Dragon huffed a bit, preparing for an explanation.  **“The fabric of time and space as you know it, the universe itself, is like water. It flows and moves as it should for the most part. Like a pond or a stream. Yet, it isn’t impossible for those with tremendous power to shake that very fabric, to throw rocks into it, bigger and bigger, to cause changes.”** Yusei nodded his head, following with what the Crimson Dragon said.

**“They could change things subtly, moving the universe around their actions minorly, but they also do things on a larger scale. What seems like someone tossing a boulder in the way of a stream, forcing the water to move around it in a completely different path than was intended or foreseen. But the water still moves forward, sometimes finding its way back to the original path, forever changed by that course.”**

“You seem to have experience in this subject.” The dragon gave a short bark of laughter.

**“This hasn’t been unknown to humans. Your ancestors learned of this and believed in it as I have explained to you. Humans get so lost in the details, though, that they forget their instincts, chasing for ‘facts’ they cannot see nor hear nor comprehend. So they are lost easily.”** Yusei shied away from the statement, feeling the dragon’s flame-filled eyes glaring at him slightly. 

**“How these beings have this power to change the course of time and space so greatly, however, is beyond me. I don’t know when they arrived here in this world that we exist in, but now I can feel their presence going back rather far.”** He made a sound, alike to the click of a tongue.  **“Not to the first signer wars, however. Much further on. I can feel their influence of this city especially. And their presence might explain the odd energy and ideals Rex Godwin had.”**

“They might have a connection to Godwin?” By now Yusei was grossly curious, wondering exactly how much influence these people could have if they had connections to what  _ Godwin _ had done. 

**“This war was different due to many things Godwin had done. He was outside of my realm of influence, though outside of many other gods’ as well. He moved with purpose and timed his plans well. Someone could have been the one giving him information, telling him what course of action he must take. Someone powerful, but not a deity.”** That must have been the answer. Beings unlike gods but not quite human. They were dangerous, though, if they almost changed the course of the war entirely. And they were his enemies if they caused him that much trouble and tried to kill his signers.  **“They are dangerous. You should be cautious of their movements, but we should try to find out more about them.”**

* * *

****“I’m impressed by how far you’ve come,” the other duelist stated. By now, Aki had summoned Junk Warrior and had a solid defense. It was all she could manage. She didn’t know Yusei’s deck as well as her own and certainly not as well as Yusei knew his. Yusei, she knew, lovingly and painstakingly chose every card in Satellite, cards people called ‘trash’. But he believed they all had a purpose. A purpose Aki wasn’t entirely aware of herself.

The experience, however, was unlike any other duel, and not just because of her deck. The sensation of the wind against her arms and gloves, of the sight of the road in front of her and the subtle bumps along the road that gently moved the steady machine slightly off course. Speed spells were also different than regular spells, requiring speed tokens to activate that you only got by moving forward, faster and faster. 

Her arms trembled a bit, though she couldn’t say it was completely out of fear. With Yusei safely resting against her back, breathing steady and slightly drooling in his slumber, she felt exhilarated by the feeling, of all the sensations surrounding her. 

She almost felt  _ free _ . Here was a completely different world, a world of speed and the open road before her, the track and her opponent and nothing more. Nothing more than moving forward. 

“You’re quite the skilled duelist then, to last this long with a deck that isn’t yours, and it's impressive how well you’ve held up in your first riding duel. However…” her opponent’s voice trailed off. “It seems that your rescue crew is up ahead on the track, waiting for us.” Aki felt a nervous chill at the thought of moving out of autopilot in order to break on the d-wheel. It wasn’t like a bicycle. It was much more powerful with the engine attached, making steering completely alien to her. She wasn’t sure she wouldn’t crash it or brake too fast, causing them to roll or drift. 

“I… I don’t know how--” 

“Relax, I’ll guide you. You do know where the brakes are, correct?” Aki nodded at her opponent. 

“Good. It’s easy to brake in autopilot, actually. The machine knows how to stop, and it will change course if you tell it what to do.” Aki nodded her head again, moving her feet slightly on the brakes. “Two presses should put it into a brake mode, and the machine will begin decelerating before moving to a stop so long as you keep your brakes on after that.”

“R-Right.” She tried to keep her voice steady, seeing the others in the horizon. Security had blocked the track off after finding out they were on it. She could faintly make out Crow and Jack at the front of the blockage. 

“Decelerate.” They were rapidly approaching, so Aki did as she was told. She pressed her foot down promptly twice before then holding the brake down. The machine began to slow, speed counters still remaining on her interface, until it finally crawled to a stop just in front of the blockage. She placed her feet on the ground suddenly to keep the bike steady, as momentum couldn’t keep it upright any further.

“Aki--!!” Crow called out in shock. “Oh my god, when did you learn how to  _ drive? _ ” He didn’t know she had a license at all, so how on Earth was she driving YuseiGo this far with Yusei behind her?

“Crow!” She smiled in relief, taking her helmet off before turning her attention to her opponent. 

The other was deactivating the duel, calling it off while the holograms faded away. Then, they carefully removed their helmet, a waterfall of blonde hair falling out to about her waist. Aki was taken aback, amazed and awed that such an experienced d-wheeler was a woman. She wasn’t sure why, perhaps if only because she didn’t see them on news or TV much at all. But here was one, in front of her.

“I’m glad you were able to get to safety, along with Yusei, Aki,” she commented, a smile on her face.

“H… How did you know my name?” Aki was rather confused at that. She knew she had never introduced herself properly at any point in their duel. 

“My team knows a lot about Yusei and his comrades,” she responded curtly. “My name is Sherry LeBlanc, and my team is very interested still in recruiting him for our team for the WRGP.” Aki gripped the handles of the D-Wheel tighter while Crow and Jack glared at her.

“He isn’t interested. He already has a team with Crow and I,” Jack answered for Yusei since he was unconscious. 

“It’s still an offer we wanted to give him. Although,” Sherry turned her attention back to Aki once more. “You are a rather competent D-wheeler yourself, Aki. I wouldn’t be opposed to recruiting you once you get your license or dueling against your properly in the future.” Sherry gave a wink, making Aki’s cheek flush in embarrassment and bewilderment. “Since she and Yusei are safe now, I shall be taking my leave. But I will be back to speak to Yusei myself once he’s recovered.” In the chaos and confusion, she slipped her helmet on and drove away, no one opposing her. She went the way they originally came in, knowing there would be no traffic on the dueling lane at all. 

“Sherry…” Aki spoke, watching her as she drove off. The view of her blonde hair, wild and flowing behind her chaotically in the wind, instilled an emotion inside Aki she had felt seldom times before: deep admiration and a drive to become like her. To become a riding duelist herself was what Aki had on her mind from that moment onward. She gripped Yusei’s helmet in her hands, eyes narrowing slightly in determination. 

She wanted to experience that feeling of the riding duel again. With confidence. That connection with her opponent and the road through her d-wheel and dueling was unlike anything she experienced before, and she wanted to do it on her own terms. 

“Let’s put Yusei in the back of one of the cars!” Crow called out before standing from his d-wheel. At the clear sound of Crow’s voice, Aki was pulled from her thoughts, and she rose from the d-wheel herself, careful of her skirt and Yusei behind her. He groaned from being awoken slightly, and Crow gingerly lifted him up by his arm and shoulder while Jack easily took the other side. From there, security moved YuseiGo into the towing portion in the back of a truck, strapping it in carefully. Aki still held her helmet while Crow got to work removing Yusei’s and settling him into a car laying down carefully. 

“Alright, he should be good.” Jack nodded in agreement, letting the security officer drive to the hospital. From the way he was wobbling in the truck and the fact he couldn’t drive was a sign something was wrong. Not to mention there was a high likelihood he had been attacked earlier. 

“We’ll meet them there.” Mikage was already in a new vehicle now after the previous one had been damaged by one of the doors flying off and crashing into it. “Aki, will you be riding with me again?” 

“A-ah, yes.” Aki stepped into the car, and Mikage followed Crow and Jack all the way to the hospital, with the car containing Yusei at front of the group leading them. Ushio was in his d-wheel behind Mikage, following behind steadily. 

The feeling of the car was unlike a riding duel at all. It was different, on a d-wheel and in the driver's seat with deck on your arm. It wasn’t a simple ride. It was… an experience. 

“Aki, how did you manage to make it that far?” Crow’s voice quickly rang through the transmission. “Did you get your license already?” Aki flushed, embarrassed to admit she had been driving illegally now while in Security’s custody. 

“Ah… N-no, I haven’t yet…” She felt Mikage’s hard glance at her. “The duelist--Sherry--pulled beside us quickly and asked me for a duel, putting us in autopilot. I dueled her along that track until we saw you, and then she had me brake before she cut the duel off.” 

“Smart.” Came Crow’s reply. “Best thing to do in the situation. If she wasn’t there…” Crow hummed a bit darkly while Mikage cleared her throat. “Regardless, we’re lucky you and Yusei made it out alive, with Yusei’s D-wheel too. I’m sure once he comes to he’ll be really happy you managed to rescue the both of them.” Aki’s face flushed darker, hearing that they would tell Yusei that.

“R-rescued? I don’t think I did that. I just… got us onto the road. Sherry is the one that saved us.”

“No, you were really brave, getting on that bike and taking it onto the road!” She heard Crow chuckle. “You’ve got a lot of fire in you to do something like that, risking your life to save Yusei and his d-wheel when you’ve never driven one before.” She heard Jack chuckle as well. 

“Though,” Mikage spoke, “you shouldn’t drive in a skirt any longer,” she sternly warned, and both Crow and Jack’s laughter stopped suddenly short. Aki’s face practically glowed red.

“N-no one saw anything, right?!” Aki asked alarmed.

“W-we’ll talk once we meet up at the hospital.” And just like that, the transmission from both Crow and Jack was cut short. Anxiety welled up in the pit of Aki’s stomach of a whole new kind.

“Mikage, no one saw anything, right?” She crossed her legs more nervously now while Mikage kept her grip on the steering wheel steady.

“I’m sure hardly anyone noticed, Aki.” 

“Oh my  _ god _ .” She covered her face in shame and shook slightly in rage. If Jack or Crow saw anything up her skirt, she  _ would _ kill them. At least, she’d kill them dead if they made any snide comments about it. 


End file.
